u/Ok_Poet9932

Okay, firstly, I, David, being an adult, have always been worried about Thomas's legacy, as much as it pains me to say, it feels like what happened with the Muppets (Post-Henson era) to be precise.

I am actually hopeful of this reboot, but also very wary of this as well. Sure, the reboot looks good and all, but my concerns are the following, because after the horrible BWBA and AEG reboots, here are my biggest concerns:

1. Will the series ever get a US dub? I mean, think about it. Thomas has always had a US dub, even going back as far as Shining Time Station. Every Thomas special, and season has had a US dub, in the same vain as the UK dub, but then again.

2. Could this be as bad as Sharon miller? Probably. But I really, really don't want that to happen. (Season 13 anyone?) And judging by the way the show is, it won't even surprise me if this show fails.

My final point, 3. Who is animating the show? I don't mean what animator is running it, I'm talking about what animation studio is in charge. I think it will just be Mattel animation or another division.

What do you all think?

I really just want this franchise to stop. Us redditors, the critics, and audiences have already wanted this franchise to stop when it was originally in the hands of Blue sky studios, around film 4 and 5, but it seems like they won't, because of all the money the make internationally like places like Asia and Europe.

I am getting sick, and I mean, sick and tired of this franchise. It had a beautiful first film, also being Blue Sky's first film back in 2002, but it got a bit bad in the second film, but then the third, fourth, and fifth film come along and ruin it's reputation as just another franchise for babies.

But if that wasn't enough, after Blue Sky studios shut down, you'd think Disney would have let the franchise become extinct, right?

WRONG!

Disney, being the money hungry company that it is, literally threw out the Buck Wild spinoff on Disney+, and boy did it suck major trash! It is bad, the actors are terrible, and of course, the story is generic.

But I am pretty hopeful for the 6th film, Boiling point, as the animation of the teaser trailer is looking pretty promising, showing that Disney could revive the franchise, like they did with many others.

What do you guys think?

Well, this is a new image of the Lightning racers series. Originally, I was like 'Oh god, not another AEG', but this new image has been revealed of the show itself, and I can see, I am really starting to say, it's not actually bad, it's pretty awesome.

I originally hated it when the first teaser image was revealed way back in April of this year, and many of us on this reddit did as well, but now, with this image revealed, it's actually based on the Mini-racers line, such as the designs and size.

It really doesn't feel like AEG anymore, it feels like Disney heard our rage, and showed us that with time, it can improve, and with the original voice actors returning, I bet this new show will be even better.

What do you guys think of this news?

I was rewatching Ice age: Continental Drift recently, and I couldn't help but realize it lazily rips off the plot of 'the meltdown' and surprisingly of all 'Misty island rescue' from Thomas & Friends.

I mean, think about it. The group gets lost ashore on a floe of ice due to the changes the earth is making.

Well, firstly, I am not a hater of Ice age. I love ice Age, I am David, a fan of the ice age franchise in general (well, films 1, 2, and 3) but after that, I lost interest in ice age.

But one question I keep having is: Did Ice age overstay it's prehistoric welcome? The answer, to me, is a big YES!

I mean, if you think about it, the critics and audiences (like myself) have already gotten tired of getting the news that yet another Ice age sequel is coming, and we've gotten 5, plus the Buck Wild spin off again, and of course, the 6th movie coming soon next year (On Ice age 1's 25th anniversary)

But when Ice age 4 released, I stopped watching Ice Age as a whole, I stopped loving the film franchise, and just quit from it. But my biggest mistake, was watching, Collision course, on TV, on FXX.

The movie felt like a chaotic mess from start to finish. The plot was all over the place, with Scrat somehow triggering an alien spaceship and causing a meteor to head toward Earth. That alone made me go, “Wait, what?” But it didn’t stop there—there were prophecies, glowing crystals, and a bunch of random subplots that didn’t add anything meaningful.

The humor was another letdown. I used to laugh at Scrat’s antics, but now it just felt repetitive and forced. The toilet jokes were especially cringey—like, why is there a random turd in the corner of the screen? That’s not funny, it’s just gross.

And the characters? Man, they’ve changed so much. Manny used to be this deep, emotional character, but now he’s just a walking cliché. Sid’s still goofy, but not in a charming way. Even Buck, who I thought was cool in Dawn of the Dinosaurs, felt like a cartoon version of himself—just spouting exposition and acting weird.

Watching it again made me realize how far the franchise has fallen. The first Ice Age movie had heart and a real story. This one just felt like it was trying too hard to be “hip” and appeal to kids with flashy visuals and slang.

Honestly, I’m kind of sad. I used to like this movie, but now I see how weak it really is. It’s like growing up and realizing your favorite childhood snack tastes like cardboard. Total disappointment.

Hello everyone! That's right! Today is finally my birthday! June 19th, which is also as of Today, the release of Toy story 5, as we all were dreading.

But back to my main point, I've finally been able to find at my local Walmart, the Whitewall McQueen re-release we've all needed, but the one thing I am not happy about on it, is that it uses the red riders cardback instead of the 20th anniversary cardback art, and, while some would say it was produced before the packaging change, but it's pretty odd.

Also, the new 2026 releases in singles/2-packs are being made in China. Does this mean the 2027 line will be made in China?

I HAD THE BEST Birthday Today.

I really miss the old take-n-play toys. They were all metal, like the Pixar cars die cast range Mattel also produces, and if they ever do bring them back, they should really get rid of the crappy big magnets they got for some reason in the 2010's/2020's.

I think the Take-N-Play line deserved better treatment, since they are collectible, highly sought after today for the original Take-along branded items (just be careful and make sure the magnets haven't rusted away), and it had a pretty good run from 2010 to 2016, and it will deeply be missed.

But I can see why they switched to the Adventures system the next year in 2017, and because Retailers wanted smaller, space-saving display boxes, and Take-N-play had to go, and I think it had to do with the fact the BWBA rebrand the next year, in 2018 (which we all hate)

Do you all think Take-n-Play should come back?

I can't believe I never noticed this, but back in 2009, When Mack got his first release in the line, including his hauler and cab, he used some...rather strange art for the packaging. 🤯

At first, you may think it's a normal 2009 release, and while yes, it is, when you look at the artwork they used for the box packaging, that it is NOT the version of Mack from the film, but rather, I don't know what it is, or where it came from.

Does anyone know where the artwork for the die cast comes from?

Well, I recently got another next-gen, to go with Marty Hauler, I finally got, for the first time in my collection, also in a 20th anniversary edition box (I'm noticing a pattern here...), anyways, it's Jackson storm's hauler, Gale Beaufort.

(And yes, for the record, Gale is a She. I always thought Gale was a male.)

And for starters, She doesn't disappoint. The detail, and the paint job are so gorgeous, and Mattel really hit it out of the park with this one. And the hauler is just as awesome as it is.

What do you guys think of Gale Beaufort?

Okay, firstly, I am not trying to offend anyone, but it needs to be stated: Marty hauler is kind of a pointless, unnecessary, and just weird follow up to the very beloved, classic Wally hauler.

Firstly, I don't necessarily hate Marty hauler, in fact, he's an okay release, but every time I go toy hunting at Walmart In Shawnee, Oklahoma, they have at least 15 of him.

But the problems begin: Firstly is that he is just a generic next gen hauler, like gale and the other next gen piston cup haulers, and Walmart haulers DO NOT look like that in real life.

What are your hot takes on Marty Hauler?

Well, Well, Well. It seems like I finally found a Cars hauler, and in a 20th anniversary box, no less. And this time, it's Walmart's own 'Marty' and, yes, sadly, he replaced Wally hauler, so, welp.

But what I love about this release of him, is of course, the packaging. Man, did Mattel really fire up with this one (pun intended) of course, and it's very, very cool looking design, and fun fact: it uses a more modern Walmart look, unlike Wally, who had a classic look. Will I miss Wally? Yes. But then again, often haulers are often discontinued to make way for the next generation.

But this hauler doesn't disappointf. It's incredible, shiny, and it still has those 3 rust-eze boxes. What do you guys think. Should Walmart bring back Wally? If so, what changes should they make?

Well, this is one of the older playsets my Walmart in Shawnee still has on the shelves, that being the speedway playset, with a plastic version of good old Tongue McQueen, and a very damaged Claude Scruggs, which looks utterly weird (the poor Scruggs dude got squished into a pancake).

And the set is a generic, smaller playset they are making nowadays, but it's based on the MSOS scene, with two fan stands for die casts (I used Cruz and Sally as an example).

But speaking of the die casts, I have been noticing something strange in regard to the die cast singles/2-pack case distribution to the local Oklahoma/Shawnee Supercenter stores. The strange thing is, is that anytime I try to even order a Cars single (NASCAR line/Race to celebrate) it's always out of stock/unavailable, and that makes me a bit peeved.

The reason is that due to the tarrifs, the cases, all lettered, they aren't often seen on store shelves until months after they were released. I swear, it's like a game of Whack-A-mole.

Tell me all your stories of being unable to find the cars die-cast you couldn't find, and what the reason is.

So, I am David. And well, I might have a few theories on why the Tuners (DJ, Wingo, Boost, and snot rod) were with McQueen on a lot of merchandise in the late 2010's.

My theories are as follows:

1. It could have been because of the Fast & Furious movie craze, after the release of Tokyo Drift, not long after Cars 1.

2. It was probably so that more kids could be introduced to them, or they were testing out new things before Cars 2 came out.

What else theories do you all have?

I recently found out about this NIKKO RC NASCAR Racer, sporting Thomas, the loveable blue tank engine, but why, of all things, use Thomas to promote it? Isn't that a bit overkill?

Hello everyone, David here! I want to say, first thing first, is that today is the 20th anniversary of the first Cars movie, and well, it actually made me love NASCAR, and the Pixar cars series as a whole. Here's my much more detailed story of how I got into the franchise (fanbase wise, anyhow.)

Firstly, I started watching Cars when I was like, 2 or at least 3 years old, back in 2009/2010, when I had the Cars Widescreen DVD, and I thought afterwards 'Man, a boring movie about a generic car', and left, and started watching Thomas, and cars 2 came out, I hated it, and stopped watching Pixar as a whole, minus Inside out (of course)

But when Cars 3 came out, I finally hopped back into cars, and I am an avid fan of Cars, and though the animation is a bit dated for 2026, since it came out in 2006, this remains a very heartfelt film, and this year also celebrates 100 years to old route 66.

I know, a lot of us are not happy about the new Cars: Lightning racers series, coming to Disney Junior, and I am with them. But one thing that has me worried is, not only the art style, but one thing that keeps popping up in my head. 'Will this be another All Engines Go?'

I mean, think about it. If bad writers are brought on, such as Sharron Miller, we could see it turn into:

McQueen: Going from mentor to 4 year old who doesn't understand traffic rules, or makes too many mistakes.

Mater: Going from Tow truck to how he was in Cars 2, but dialed up to a million

and the other characters would be bad too. But one thing I can say that puts me at ease, is that the OG actors are still in the show, and I feel like it could be like Bluey, often tackling serious issues?

If sharron miller ever took an episode to write it, how do you think the characters would be portrayed?

Hello everyone, David here! And today, I want to talk about why I love Pixar Cars, and in fact, the whole franchise in general. Since this year marks the film's own 20th Anniversary, I couldn't have picked a better time to talk about the film.

(Also, big tributes to Paul Newman, Kyle Busch, and every NASCAR legend who passed away)

So, firstly, the big question is 'how did I get into Pixar cars, at least, in the fanbase?' Well, the true story is that I owned Cars on DVD, more specifically, the Widescreen DVD version, and I initially thought 'yeah it's a boring movie', but watching it years later, on route 66's 100th anniversary, and speaking of the iconic 'mother road', that's why I love the film.

It's production history, from a yellow car, to a route 66 story, to what it is now, Is quite an adventure.

What do you all think of Pixar cars?

Hello guys, David here! And I have played PowerWash simulator 1 for the PS4, but recently, an update has been rolled out, and it...broke the game. (Yes, I'm serious, it just goes to a black screen with a circle spinning.

I don't know what's going on, or if this was a bug of some kind. Is anyone else having the same issues, and how will they fix it?

Hello guys, David here! I actually want to say a few things, and they are about the die-cast release of good ol' Leroy traffik, but more specifically, his deluxe 'snow tires' variant, as seen in the end of the movie during the epilogue.

But when they released him originally in 2010 as a 'Deluxe' as per usual, but one minor problem on the box card back. Instead of using him with snow tires, as the card name suggests, they use his regular die cast artwork instead.

Yep. It's an error, and coming up is an inconsistency! Speaking of his 2010 release in the Deluxe line, he was made an incorrect metallic color, instead of his light lavender color, which was later changed to be more accurate in his later Thailand single variant.

Did you guys spot the error?

Am I the only one who relates to this scene, waking up on a Monday?